As omni-channel becomes more of a growing focus for retail marketers, one of the biggest challenges retailers face is orienting their store environment based on the way shoppers shop, not the way they are organizationally structured. In other words, taking a holistic approach to shopper experience, not a departmental view.
To get a quick sense for how well a retailer is doing with their omni-channel approach, observe how they connect their out of store circular with their in store merchandising. The majority of retailers struggle making the connection between what drives a shopper to the store and what helps them purchase a product once they are in store.
With this in mind, here is an example from Total Wine worth sharing. Their printed circular highlighted "Top 15 Under $15" wines of summer. Upon entering the store, the first endcap by the entrance had a header with same artwork as the circular and the same products merchandised front and center. Even more, at shelf (on the endcap and also throughout the store), there were additional shelf tags highlighting which of the wines were part of this program.
Omni channeling is one of the most important shifts retailers will need to make in the coming years. Shopper marketing in an omni-channel world doesn't have to be complex, in fact, we at Theory House believe that while it may be organizationally difficult to execute, it should be executionally easy for shoppers.
